Easternmost Roman aqueduct discovered in Armenia
Archaeologists find evidence of failed Roman imperialism

Date:
November 15, 2021
Source:
University of Mu"nster
Summary:
Archaeologists have discovered remains of a Roman arched
aqueduct during excavation work on the Hellenistic royal city of
Artashat-Artaxata in ancient Armenia. It is the easternmost arched
aqueduct in the Roman Empire.



FULL STORY ========================================================================== Archaeologists from the University of Mu"nster and the National Academy
of Sciences of the Republic of Armenia have discovered remains of a
Roman arched aqueduct during excavation work on the Hellenistic royal
city of Artashat- Artaxata in ancient Armenia. It is the easternmost
arched aqueduct in the Roman Empire. Excavation work took place back
in 2019, and an evaluation of the find has now been published in the Archa"ologischer Anzeiger journal.


==========================================================================
"The monumental foundations are evidence of an unfinished aqueduct
bridge built by the Roman army between 114 and 117 CE," explains author
Prof. Achim Lichtenberger from the Institute of Classical Archaeology
and Christian Archaeology at the University of Mu"nster. "At that
time, Artaxata was destined to become the capital of a Roman province
in Armenia." It was during this time that the Roman Empire reached
its greatest extent -- if only for a short while -- because it was
under Trajan, who was Emperor of Rome from 98 to 117 CE - - that the
Romans attempted to incorporate the province of Armenia into the Roman
Empire. "The planned, and partially completed, construction of the
aqueduct in Artaxata shows just how much effort was made, in a very
short space of time, to integrate the infrastructure of the capital of
the province into the Empire," says co-author Torben Schreiber from
the Institute of Classical Archaeology and Christian Archaeology at
the University of Mu"nster. "The aqueduct remained unfinished because
after Trajan's death, in 117 CE, his successor Hadrian relinquished the province of Armenia before the aqueduct was completed." The archaeologists therefore see their find as furnishing evidence for the failure of Roman imperialism in Armenia.

Methods In their excavation campaign, the team used a multidisciplinary combination of methods from the fields of archaeology, geophysics,
geochemistry and archaeoinformatics. The area of the Hellenistic
metropolis of Artaxata in the Ararat Plain was first examined
geomagnetically. At this stage of their work, the experts surveyed
and charted any anomalies. The geomagnetic image showed a conspicuous
dotted line, which they analysed with so-called sondages. The results
were documented by the archaeologists three-dimensionally. Additional
drillings provided evidence of further unfinished or destroyed
pillars of the aqueduct. "We used satellite pictures and infrared
images from a drone to visualise the course of the aqueduct's pillars,"
says co-author Dr. Mkrtich Zardaryan from the Institute of Archaeology
and Ethnography at the National Academy of Sciences of the Republic of
Armenia. "We reconstructed the planned course of the aqueduct by means
of a computer-assisted path analysis between the possible sources of the
water and its destination." A scientific analysis of the lime mortar used showed that it was a typical Roman recipe. An analysis of soil samples
dated the construction of the aqueduct to between 60 and 460 CE, and in
the opinion of the researchers this makes the reign of Emperor Trajan
the most likely dating for it.

Project: "Artaxata in Armenia -- Fieldwork in a Hellenistic Metropolis in
the Ararat Plain" Since 2018 a team of German and Armenian scientists --
headed by Achim Lichtenberger (Mu"nster University), Mkrtich Zardaryan (Armenian Academy of Sciences) and Torben Schreiber (Mu"nster University)
-- have been carrying out research into the Hellenistic metropolis of
Artaxata in the Ararat Plain in Armenia. Their aim is to examine both a
newly established Hellenistic royal city and the many-faceted cultural
imprint between Central Asia, Iran and the Mediterranean region.

========================================================================== Story Source: Materials provided by University_of_Mu"nster. Note:
Content may be edited for style and length.


========================================================================== Related Multimedia:
* Images_of_the_unfinished_aqueduct.

==========================================================================


Link to news story: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/11/211115103445.htm

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